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Glossary entry

German term or phrase:

Tiefausläufer

English translation:

front (associated with an area of low pressure)

Added to glossary by Britta Norris
Oct 27, 2020 18:59
3 yrs ago
34 viewers *
German term

Tiefausläufer

German to English Science Meteorology
Unfortunately, there is no meaningful context that I could provide since this is a social science text that just uses a weather metaphor. The term obviously relates to low-pressure areas in meteorology. Does anyone have an idea what this would be in English? Thanks for your help!
Proposed translations (English)
4 +2 front (associated with an area of low pressure)
3 troughs of low pressure
Change log

Oct 29, 2020 20:15: Britta Norris Created KOG entry

Discussion

Britta Norris Oct 28, 2020:
Stephan, the translation given, despite having been taken from a ‘regular’ Langenscheidt (online) dictionary (see link provided), is marked as ‘meteor’; hope that helps further. :)
Stephan Elkins (asker) Oct 28, 2020:
I just noticed that both philgoddard and Gordon agree that "low-pressure front" would be the correct literal translation. If that's the case, then the problem is solved. Thank you very much!
Stephan Elkins (asker) Oct 28, 2020:
The standard literal translation woud be perfect Dear collegues, I greatly appreciate all your thoughts on this. i understand that the metaphor is problematic. Even so, the only thing I need is the literal translation. If somebody has access to an English-German dictionary of meterological terms and could just look the term up for me that would be perfect. Really, a literal translation without any literary finesse will do. Does anyone have such a dictionary or know the literal translation?

If someone still needs more context, the "Tiefs" are all the difficulties that the welfare state faces. Please believe me, in this particular case the issue is not whether the metaphor makes sense or not. This is not important. I just need the literal term. Thanks for your help!
Gordon Matthews Oct 28, 2020:
More context would be helpful It is a confusing metaphor, because it doesn't make sense for a front (associated with an area of low pressure) to be exerting pressure (Druck). It is clear that "Hoch" is a reference to the welfare state. It would be helpful to know what "Tiefausläufern" is referring to, so please, Stephan, give some additional context.
philgoddard Oct 27, 2020:
Thanks I'm surprised you don't think this is meaningful context. It makes a lot more sense now.
Stephan Elkins (asker) Oct 27, 2020:
Context "Der Wohlfahrtstaat gleicht einem Hoch, das nun unter dem Druck von *Tiefausläufern* gerät."
My guess is that you will agree that the context doesn't provide much "context." I think the literal translation in your dictionary (can't find one in any of mine) will work just fine. Thanks for your response!
philgoddard Oct 27, 2020:
Please could we have the context anyway. It's easy enough to look up in the dictionary, but a literal translation may not work.

Proposed translations

+2
22 mins
Selected

front (associated with an area of low pressure)

Or just ‘low-pressure front’.

https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/learn-about/weather/how...

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Note added at 2 days 1 hr (2020-10-29 20:13:58 GMT) Post-grading
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And thank you too for your last message and update! That's also really appreciated! :)
Reference:

https://en.langenscheidt.com/german-english/tiefauslaeufer

Note from asker:
Thanks Britta! I'm really ignorant of technical terminology in meteorology. Low-pressure front was actually my own wild guess, but I wasn't sure whether "Ausläufer" is really the same as front. Is it? If so, this would be a perfect solution. A literal translation is really all I need.
Peer comment(s):
agree philgoddard : We still don't have enough context to know why this simile is being used, but maybe something like "a ridge of high pressure with troughs swirling around its edges".
1 hr
Thank you philgoddard. :)
agree Gordon Matthews : This is a correct translation of "Tiefausläufer". But I don't think the metaphor works at all.
14 hrs
Thank you Gordon. :)
Something went wrong...
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "I want to thank you all for your help! What seemed to be a simple straightforward question turned out to be more difficult than I anticipated. Having no clue which of the two proposals would be the best solution, I consulted the German Weather Service. A friendly person there explained to me that "Tiefausläufer" is actually not a clearly defined meterological term and English weather reports usually speak of "fronts" and sometimes of "troughs" under specific circumstances (rain). So I guess that solves the issue. Thanks again! I greatly appreciate your help!"
21 hrs

troughs of low pressure

Tiefausläufer
eine Ausbuchtung in der Front eines Tiefdruckgebietes (Zyklone). Durch die Bewegung um das Tiefdruckgebiet bewirkt er einen fallenden Luftdruck, starke Winde und wechselhaftes Wetter.
https://www.wissen.de/lexikon/tiefauslaeufer

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Note added at 21 hrs (2020-10-28 16:35:47 GMT)
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trough of low pressure [METEO.]
Ausläufer eines Tiefs
https://dict.leo.org/englisch-deutsch/ausläufer

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Note added at 23 hrs (2020-10-28 18:23:07 GMT)
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Troughs of low pressure (dips in the jet stream) are found on either side of this ridge (forming the Greek Letter Omega: Ω).
https://weather.com/news/international/news/europe-flood-exc...

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Note added at 23 hrs (2020-10-28 18:25:58 GMT)
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Bulges and elongation in the circular pattern are known as Troughs of Low Pressure.
https://www.metmalawi.com/services/met_terms.php

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Note added at 23 hrs (2020-10-28 18:28:44 GMT)
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The last reference mentions "bulges" which recalls the "Ausbuchtung" in my first reference.

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Note added at 23 hrs (2020-10-28 18:36:25 GMT)
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And last not least:

Trough
An extension of an area of low atmospheric pressure, shown on a synoptic chart by isobars that are concave ...
https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/978019954...

In der Isobarenkarte ist die Lage des Tiefausläufers durch eine trogförmige Ausbuchtung der Isobaren gekennzeichnet.
https://www.dwd.de/DE/service/lexikon/Functions/glossar.html...
Note from asker:
Thank you for your suggestion!
Peer comment(s):
disagree Gordon Matthews : No. This is what I thought initially. But a Tiefausläufer is not an Ausläufer eines Tiefs, as one might expect, but rather an Ausbuchtung (bulge) in a front (associated with a depression or cyclone), as stated in your explanation.
51 mins
Sorry, no time (or inclination) to substantiate further.
agree Lancashireman : Harsh judgement from someone who admits to being confused.
6 hrs
Many thanks, Andrew. Stay well!
Something went wrong...
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